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The realization hit the merchant lords and the nobles like a bucket of ice water, swiftly followed by a profound, grudging, and absolute respect for the man sitting upon the Dragon Throne. It was a brilliantly cruel, perfectly executed strategy. The Emperor had deliberately provided a number that was just large enough to addict them to the luxury, but entirely too small to satisfy the inevitable demand of their households. He had given them a taste of the heavens, only to yank it away, leaving them staring at a locked gate.
They looked around the room, sharing dark, knowing smiles with one another. They recognized the trap. They were being manipulated, herded like sheep into the Emperor's new economic pen. And yet, the most terrifying aspect of the Emperor's strategy was that they could not do a single thing about it.
They couldn't replicate the recipe, because the chemical synthesis was a guarded state secret, protected by the lethal blades of the Orioles. They couldn't buy it from foreign smugglers, because the Hengyuan Dynasty controlled the entire continent.
They were utterly, hopelessly trapped by their own newly awakened desires, and by the undeniable medicinal importance of the product. They had no choice but to open their treasuries and pour their accumulated wealth directly into the hands of the Ministry of Revenue the moment the state monopolies opened their doors.
The Black Dragon had conquered their lands with iron, and now he was conquering their gold with flowers.
Unbothered by the frantic economic calculations of his guests, Lie Fan sat comfortably upon the dais, enjoying the lavish feast. The grand unification banquet continued for several more hours, transitioning into a warm, comfortable, and deeply joyous affair.
The wine continued to flow, the dancers twirled in endless ribbons of azure silk, and the heavy burden of the past decades finally seemed to evaporate entirely into the high rafters of the palace.
Eventually, as the moon reached its zenith and the crystal oil lamps began to burn low, throwing long, dancing shadows across the polished stone floors, Lie Fan decided it was time to bring the historic night to a close.
The Emperor stood up from the golden Dragon Throne.
Once again, the sheer physical presence of the sovereign rising to his feet acted as a universal command. The music faded, the dancers bowed and hastily retreated to the wings, and the thousands of guests immediately silenced their conversations, turning their rapt attention toward the dais.
"My honored guests, loyal subjects, and friends," Lie Fan's voice boomed, rich and warm, echoing effortlessly across the vast expanse of the hall. "The night grows late, and the wine has flowed freely. You have traveled vast distances, braved stormy seas and treacherous mountain passes, to stand in this hall and bear witness to the dawn of our unified world. I thank you for your presence, and for your devotion."
Lie Fan stepped to the edge of the dais, his hands clasped behind his back, his dark, majestic Mianfu robes catching the flickering light.
"Tonight, this banquet officially concludes," Lie Fan announced. "However, the celebration of our grand unification is far from over. As I decreed, the imperial holidays shall continue for two more full days, beginning tomorrow at dawn. The bureaucratic machinery of the empire is halted. The ledgers are closed. The only mandate for the next forty eight hours is joy."
He swept his gaze over the assembly, specifically focusing his attention on the tables occupied by the vassal kings, the tributary lords, and the recently subjugated chieftains from the deep south, the eastern peninsula, and the harsh western plateaus.
"I urge all of you, but especially those of you who have traveled from beyond the central plains, to not spend these next two days locked within your guest quarters," Lie Fan commanded, his tone shifting from a host to a visionary leader. "Take this chance to walk freely through the streets of Xiapi. Explore the capital. I want you to see the world we have built while you were isolated in your mountains and your jungles."
Lie Fan gestured toward the massive wooden doors that led out to the city.
"Walk our wide, paved avenues. Look upon our towering markets, filled with goods from every corner of the earth. Observe the clean water flowing through our aqueducts, and the safety of our streets, where women and children walk without fear of bandits or marauding soldiers," Lie Fan said, his voice swelling with immense, undeniable pride.
"I want you to see the absolute wonder of a civilization operating at the height of peace and prosperity," he continued, locking eyes with the King of Goguryeo and the tribal lords of the Qiang. "I want you to look at the towering foundries, the bustling academies, and the smiling faces of the common people. And as you walk these streets, I want you to learn a fundamental truth."
Lie Fan's voice dropped into a register of absolute, unbreakable conviction.
"I want you to realize that the choice you made, the choice to lower your banners, to lay down your swords, and to become a subservient, integrated nation of the Hengyuan Dynasty, was the greatest, most righteous choice you could have possibly made for your people," Lie Fan declared fiercely.
"Submission to this throne is not a sentence of slavery or humiliation. It is an invitation to flourish. Look at my capital tomorrow, and know that this peace, this wealth, and this safety will be extended to your own borders. Under the shadow of the Black Dragon, your tribes and your kingdoms will not merely survive, they will thrive like never before in recorded history!"
The profound, visionary weight of the Emperor's words struck the foreign dignitaries to their absolute cores. For years, they had viewed the central plains with fear and suspicion, seeing the Hengyuan armies only as terrifying engines of destruction.
But now, listening to the Emperor, and holding the luxurious, life saving soap in their hands, the narrative shifted. They were not just conquered subjects; they were participants in a golden age.
"Enjoy the festival!" Lie Fan roared, raising his hands high into the air, a triumphant smile splitting his face. "Enjoy the peace! The era of Hengyuan has begun!"
The response was an earth shattering, volcanic eruption of sound.
Every single person inside the grand banquet hall, and the thousands listening in the outer courtyards, leaped to their feet. They did not just clap, they roared. They threw their hands into the air, cheering with a frantic, tear streaked, absolute devotion that shook the very foundations of the Imperial Palace.
"LONG LIVE THE EMPEROR! LONG LIVE THE HENGYUAN DYNASTY!"
"MAY YOUR REIGN LAST TEN THOUSAND YEARS!"
The applause was a physical wave of sound, washing over the dais in a continuous, deafening roar.
Lie Fan stood at the edge of the dais, soaking in the absolute adulation of the unified world for a long, triumphant moment. Then, he turned and extended his hand to Empress Ying Yue.
Ying Yue placed her delicate hand in his, her face radiant with a fierce, beautiful pride. Together, the supreme rulers of the earth turned their backs to the assembly and began their slow, majestic procession toward the private inner corridors of the palace.
Following immediately behind them, moving with synchronized, flawless courtly grace, were the Imperial Concubines. Diao Chan, Cai Wenji, Lu Lingqi, and Zhen Ji walked with their heads held high, their magnificent silk robes trailing behind them, embodying the profound elegance and strength of the inner court.
And finally, walking in a highly disciplined, perfectly ordered line, came the children of the dynasty. Crown Prince Muchen led his twin and his younger siblings, their small faces glowing with the excitement of the night and the awe of their father's absolute power.
As the Imperial Family, the living, breathing manifestation of the Hengyuan future, disappeared through the heavy oak doors, flanked by the terrifying, silent wall of the Yellow Ghost Bodyguards, the formal constraints of the banquet entirely vanished.
The Emperor had left the room, and the frantic, ruthless instincts of the mercantile world immediately took over.
The moment the heavy doors clicked shut behind the last imperial guard, the grand banquet hall devolved into a scene of chaotic, desperate, high class clamoring. The wealthiest, most powerful men on the continent, dukes, marquises, grand merchants, and vassal kings, completely abandoned their dignified courtly postures.
They did not slowly file out of the hall. Instead, they surged forward like a tidal wave of glittering silk and panicked greed, entirely swarming the two men who held the keys to their newest addiction.
Chancellor Jia Xu and Minister of Revenue Mi Zhu, who had been quietly preparing to take their own leave, suddenly found themselves entirely surrounded by a frantic, pressing mob of the empire's elite.
"Minister Mi! Chancellor Jia!" a fabulously wealthy merchant lord from Jing Province shouted, frantically waving his small cedar box in the air as he pushed his way to the front of the mob. "This soap! It is a miracle! I must secure a shipment for my estate in Xiangyang! Name your price! I will pay triple the weight in silver for fifty crates of the Jasmine variant!"
"Fifty crates?!" a tribal king from the southwest roared, shoving the merchant aside with a heavy, fur draped arm. "My wives will riot if I return with only five bars! Master Mi Zhu, I represent the entire southern trade route! I demand a dedicated caravan of the lotus soap and the ginseng shampoo! We will pay in raw gold!"
"Minister Mi Zhu, please! A moment of your time!" an aristocratic noble from the old capital of Luoyang pleaded, his face flushed with wine and desperation. "My entire household... they must have it! The incense is choking my mother! How do we secure the purchasing rights? Who do we bribe? Just give us a number!"
Jia Xu and Mi Zhu were, for a brief, incredibly rare moment, entirely overwhelmed. They were accustomed to navigating the cutthroat politics of war and the delicate balance of international diplomacy, but they had never been physically swarmed by hundreds of desperate, wealthy men begging to hand over their fortunes.
Jia Xu's dark, calculating eyes narrowed. He crossed his arms over his chest, his face settling into a chilling, deeply intimidating mask that instantly caused the men closest to him to physically recoil, suddenly remembering that they were crowding the deadliest spymaster in human history.
With the immediate perimeter cleared by Jia Xu's sheer, terrifying aura, Mi Zhu stepped forward. The Minister of Revenue, a man who had been born to dominate markets, found his footing. A wide, incredibly satisfied, and booming merchant's laugh erupted from his chest.
"My Lords! Gentlemen! Kings of the realm! Peace! Peace!" Mi Zhu bellowed, raising his hands high in the air, his voice carrying the practiced, authoritative boom of a master auctioneer, easily cutting through the frantic clamor of the mob.
The wealthy nobles and merchants slowly quieted down, though they still pressed in closely, their eyes locked hungrily on the Minister of Revenue, waiting for their financial salvation.
"I see that His Imperial Majesty's generous gift has been well received!" Mi Zhu laughed, his eyes crinkling with absolute delight as he looked at the desperate faces surrounding him. "Your enthusiasm is a testament to the absolute brilliance of the throne!"
"But how do we buy it, Minister?!" someone shouted from the back of the crowd.
"Patience!" Mi Zhu commanded, lowering his hands and adopting a tone of strict, bureaucratic authority. "As His Majesty decreed, the production of Soap and Shampoo is an absolute, unyielding monopoly of the state. There will be no back room dealing tonight. There are no purchasing rights to be bribed for, and there are no secret caravans."
A collective groan of despair rippled through the wealthy crowd, terrified that they would be cut off from the supply.
"However," Mi Zhu continued smoothly, a sly, predatory smile touching his lips, "the imperial storehouses are not empty. We have anticipated your... profound interest."
He pointed a finger toward the massive, heavily fortified administrative wing of the palace.
"Hear me clearly," Mi Zhu announced, his voice ringing with absolute finality. "For the next two days, the empire rests. The capital celebrates. But on the morning of the third day, when the holidays conclude and the Ministry of Revenue officially reopens its doors... you may send your formal ledgers and your purchasing requests directly to my offices."
The merchants practically vibrated with anticipation, mentally drafting their letters on the spot.
"I will be personally addressing every single letter of request," Mi Zhu promised, his eyes sweeping over the crowd, locking in the future wealth of the dynasty. "And I assure you, you need not panic. You need not trample one another in the streets. We have established massive, highly efficient manufacturing foundries under the direct, secure oversight of Chancellor Jia Xu. There is more than enough stock currently curing in our warehouses to fulfill the needs of every noble estate, every royal harem, and every merchant guild from here to the borders of the known world."
A massive, collective sigh of relief washed over the assembly. The supply was secure.
But Mi Zhu was not finished. He raised his hand one last time, his expression shifting from that of a greedy merchant to the proud minister of a populist Emperor.
"But you must all understand one final, unbreakable edict from the Dragon Throne," Mi Zhu declared, his voice echoing with the profound, philosophical weight of Lie Fan's grand design. "You wealthy lords shall have your Jasmine, your Lotus, and your Sandalwood. You shall pay handsomely for the luxury of those floral infusions, and you shall fill our treasuries."
Mi Zhu looked out at the sea of bewildered aristocrats, delivering the final, brilliant stroke of Lie Fan's economic and social policy.
"But His Imperial Majesty has explicitly commanded that the fundamental miracle of cleanliness shall not be restricted solely to the wealthy," Mi Zhu announced proudly. "The base, unscented lye soap, the core formulation that strips disease and filth from the body, will be mass produced and heavily subsidized by the state. It will be distributed to the common markets, to the clinics of Master Hua Tuo and Master Zhang Zhongjing, and to the supply trains of our armies. It will be sold at a decent, affordable price so that every single peasant, farmer, and soldier across the entire expanse of this unified land can afford to be clean, healthy, and safe."
The nobles blinked in stunned silence, their minds struggling to process the scale of the Emperor's vision. He was going to bleed the aristocracy dry with luxury, while simultaneously elevating the health and standard of living for millions of commoners, entirely cementing the absolute, fanatical devotion of the peasantry to the Hengyuan Dynasty.
It was an economic masterpiece. It was a social revolution.
"Now," Mi Zhu concluded, waving his hands in a grand, dismissive gesture toward the open doors of the banquet hall. "Go! Return to your quarters! Enjoy the soap you have been gifted, walk the beautiful, safe streets of Xiapi tomorrow, and prepare your gold for the third day! The banquet is ended!"
With the explicit instructions finally given, the frantic mob of nobles and merchants finally broke apart. They bowed deeply to the two ministers, clutching their small cedar boxes tightly to their chests as if they were made of solid diamond, and hurried out of the grand hall, their minds racing with the intoxicating scent of jasmine and the ruthless, brilliant reality of the new world order.
Jia Xu and Mi Zhu stood alone in the center of the vast, emptying hall, surrounded by the remnants of the greatest feast in history.
Mi Zhu turned to the spymaster, a wide, unrestrained grin on his face. "Did you see their eyes, Master Wenhe? They are entirely addicted. The treasury vaults will overflow before the month is out."
Jia Xu looked toward the heavy doors through which Emperor Lie Fan had exited, his dark eyes reflecting a profound, absolute reverence.
"The wealth is inevitable, Zizhong," Jia Xu rasped softly, his voice carrying the chilling, serene peace of a world finally brought to heel. "But the true victory is the peace. The warlords are dead. The tribes are broken. The world smells of flowers, and the Black Dragon rests upon the throne. Come. Let us enjoy the holiday, for on the third day, we rule the earth."
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Name: Lie Fan
Title: Founding Emperor Of Hengyuan Dynasty
Age: 36 (203 AD)
Level: 16
Next Level: 462,000
Renown: 2325
Cultivation: Yin Yang Separation (level 11)
SP: 1,121,700
ATTRIBUTE POINTS
STR: 1,010 (+20)
VIT: 659 (+20)
AGI: 653 (+10)
INT: 691
CHR: 98
WIS: 569
WILL: 436
ATR Points: 0